A nationwide text alert scheme to report people who park illegally in disabled spaces, that was first proposed over a year ago, is in operation in only two of the country’s 31 local authorities.
The Disabled Drivers Association of Ireland (DDAI) has been lobbying extensively for a text alert system, where people can report abusers of the parking spaces anonymously, yet only Wexford County Council and South Dublin County Council have the initiative in place.
Gorey was the first to introduce a scheme on a pilot basis almost 10 years ago that is now administered by the council’s customer service unit. A similar service is available in Lucan and Rathfarnham where a sign displaying the bay number and a mobile phone number is in place at every publicly accessible parking bay. If someone is parked in one of those bays without a permit or is misusing the permit, people can text the bay number to alert the traffic warden.
A survey conducted by DDAI last year among its members suggested that fear of physical and verbal abuse were the main reasons disabled drivers did not approach people parked illegally in accessible parking bays.
The survey received 2,662 responses, 68% from women and 32% from men, with 94% in favour of a text alert scheme.
When asked why they would not approach anyone parked illegally, 88% of respondents cited fear of confrontation, fear of abuse, not wanting to cause a scene or not worth the abuse.
Richard Ryder, marketing manager with the Disabled Drivers Association says the issue continues to cause huge frustration for drivers and passengers who hold disabled parking permits.
“Our survey wasn’t confined to our members, we received a huge response from across the community, with many people without disabilities commenting they are annoyed and frustrated with the misuse of accessible parking bays,” he says.
“It’s very clear that people want an opportunity to be able to do something about parking bay abuse, but in a safe way. That’s why we are calling on city and county councils to begin using a text alert scheme in their areas. It’s safe, it’s easy and it’s a significant deterrent.”
In the 15 months since the survey results were made public, only one local authority has contacted DDAI about setting up a text alert scheme.
“I had been contacted by a member of Galway City Council who was due to table a motion calling for a text alert scheme to be adopted but I haven’t heard anything in recent months,” adds Richard.
Richard Ryder, Disabled Drivers Association of Ireland.
Disabled driver:
John McFarlane, Co Offaly
John McFarlane lives in Ballyhugh near Edenderry in Co Offaly. A disabled driver for many years, he is now a disabled passenger and says he has received a considerable amount of abuse for challenging people who park illegally in accessible parking bays.
“I’ve had ongoing abuse down through the years but I would say it’s getting worse and, however bad it is for me, I know women get it worse, and a disabled woman is particularly vulnerable,” he says.
“People just don’t care. They say they’re only going to be five minutes or will tell you where to go if you call them out. One of the biggest problems is the location of these parking bays, which often are right in front of an ATM which makes them hugely convenient for the general public.
“In Edenderry, the disabled space is in front of the doctor’s surgery which makes obvious sense for a person with a disability, but it is also hugely attractive for people who are nipping in to collect a prescription.
“More thought needs to be given to where we locate these spaces, but I would be very much in favour of a system whereby offenders can be reported anonymously. There isn’t enough enforcement, with people confident they’ll get away with using these spaces without fear of being caught. A text alert system would encourage more people to report abuse and it would remove the threat of violence and aggression that puts most people off challenging offenders in person.”
It is an offence to park a vehicle in an accessible parking bay in a public place without a valid parking permit. Offenders receive a parking fine of €150 which increases to €225 if not paid within 28 days.
People just don’t care. They say they’re only going to be five minutes or will tell you where to go if you call them out
John also explains that even those who have the right to use the blue badge and park in disabled spaces are sometimes guilty of infringements.
“I am no longer driving but my wife brings me where I need to go and I have the blue badge for such purposes. But under the rules, she is entitled to park in an accessible parking space to drop me off, and then she must move the car to a public parking space, as the badge is attached to the disabled person not the vehicle,” he says.
Philip Knight, district manager of Gorey Municipal District says the council is fully committed to enforcing parking laws in the town.
“This was a service we used to run in Gorey that was launched around 2016. It was a pilot service and was reasonably successful at a time before we had a dedicated customer service unit,” he explains.
“Wexford County Council remains committed to keeping disabled access parking bays for those who need them, and all complaints are dealt with through the customer service unit where people can report incidents anonymously if they wish.”
Other parts of the country are also grappling with the issue, with members of Portlaoise Municipal District calling on Laois County Council to step up its efforts in tackling the abuse of disabled parking spaces.
A motion proposed by Cllr Tommy Mulligan at last month’s municipal meeting is calling for a text alert scheme in the town.
Fine Gael Cllr Paddy Buggy told Irish Country Living that the motion had been unanimously backed by members at the meeting.
“This is a huge problem not only in Portlaoise but all over the country and, unfortunately, it seems to reflect a growing problem in society where people just don’t care about how their actions affect others,” he says.
“Portlaoise is a big town, practically a city at this stage and we only have two traffic wardens who can’t be everywhere all of the time. A text alert system would help them massively and it would also be a deterrent to people who think they won’t be caught if they use disabled parking spaces, which they’ve no entitlement to.”
John McFarlane agrees it is a nationwide issue but says the problem is also encountered throughout Europe.
“The parking permits issued in Ireland are EU permits and this is a problem all over Europe and the UK,” he adds.
“I used to work for the EU Commission and was involved in drafting accessible built environment regulations in the 1980s and 1990s. There have been refinements to the laws in the intervening years and it comes down to enforcement.
Naming and shaming
“Social media groups have taken to naming and shaming offenders, where they post photos of cars parked illegally, but people continue to do it. If they were hit in the pocket with the €150 fine that applies to this offence it might change behaviour. Or they could follow the example of the authorities in Dubai.
“If you park illegally in an accessible parking space over there, you are fined for your first offence. If you do it a second time, they confiscate your car for a week and if that doesn’t teach you, your car is crushed for a third offence.”
A Review of the Disabled Parking Scheme was launched by the Department of Transport in 2023 and is nearing its final stages.
The Department is currently undertaking an analysis of the legislative basis of the scheme, with an emphasis on permit eligibility and assessment of mobility impairment, which is due for completion by the end of 2025.
Efforts to combat the abuse of the Blue Badge scheme, where people apply for a permit fraudulently or use a permit belonging to a person who is deceased, have led to a new offence being introduced in March of this year by the Department of Transport.People can now be prosecuted for such an offence, with penalties of up to €2,500 in fines and/or up to six months in prison.A fixed charged notice to the value of €200 may also be issued for the misuse of a permit by a person other than the named owner of the permit.A survey conducted by DDAI last year received 2,662 responses, 68% from women and 32% from men, with 94% in favour of a text alert scheme.
A nationwide text alert scheme to report people who park illegally in disabled spaces, that was first proposed over a year ago, is in operation in only two of the country’s 31 local authorities.
The Disabled Drivers Association of Ireland (DDAI) has been lobbying extensively for a text alert system, where people can report abusers of the parking spaces anonymously, yet only Wexford County Council and South Dublin County Council have the initiative in place.
Gorey was the first to introduce a scheme on a pilot basis almost 10 years ago that is now administered by the council’s customer service unit. A similar service is available in Lucan and Rathfarnham where a sign displaying the bay number and a mobile phone number is in place at every publicly accessible parking bay. If someone is parked in one of those bays without a permit or is misusing the permit, people can text the bay number to alert the traffic warden.
A survey conducted by DDAI last year among its members suggested that fear of physical and verbal abuse were the main reasons disabled drivers did not approach people parked illegally in accessible parking bays.
The survey received 2,662 responses, 68% from women and 32% from men, with 94% in favour of a text alert scheme.
When asked why they would not approach anyone parked illegally, 88% of respondents cited fear of confrontation, fear of abuse, not wanting to cause a scene or not worth the abuse.
Richard Ryder, marketing manager with the Disabled Drivers Association says the issue continues to cause huge frustration for drivers and passengers who hold disabled parking permits.
“Our survey wasn’t confined to our members, we received a huge response from across the community, with many people without disabilities commenting they are annoyed and frustrated with the misuse of accessible parking bays,” he says.
“It’s very clear that people want an opportunity to be able to do something about parking bay abuse, but in a safe way. That’s why we are calling on city and county councils to begin using a text alert scheme in their areas. It’s safe, it’s easy and it’s a significant deterrent.”
In the 15 months since the survey results were made public, only one local authority has contacted DDAI about setting up a text alert scheme.
“I had been contacted by a member of Galway City Council who was due to table a motion calling for a text alert scheme to be adopted but I haven’t heard anything in recent months,” adds Richard.
Richard Ryder, Disabled Drivers Association of Ireland.
Disabled driver:
John McFarlane, Co Offaly
John McFarlane lives in Ballyhugh near Edenderry in Co Offaly. A disabled driver for many years, he is now a disabled passenger and says he has received a considerable amount of abuse for challenging people who park illegally in accessible parking bays.
“I’ve had ongoing abuse down through the years but I would say it’s getting worse and, however bad it is for me, I know women get it worse, and a disabled woman is particularly vulnerable,” he says.
“People just don’t care. They say they’re only going to be five minutes or will tell you where to go if you call them out. One of the biggest problems is the location of these parking bays, which often are right in front of an ATM which makes them hugely convenient for the general public.
“In Edenderry, the disabled space is in front of the doctor’s surgery which makes obvious sense for a person with a disability, but it is also hugely attractive for people who are nipping in to collect a prescription.
“More thought needs to be given to where we locate these spaces, but I would be very much in favour of a system whereby offenders can be reported anonymously. There isn’t enough enforcement, with people confident they’ll get away with using these spaces without fear of being caught. A text alert system would encourage more people to report abuse and it would remove the threat of violence and aggression that puts most people off challenging offenders in person.”
It is an offence to park a vehicle in an accessible parking bay in a public place without a valid parking permit. Offenders receive a parking fine of €150 which increases to €225 if not paid within 28 days.
People just don’t care. They say they’re only going to be five minutes or will tell you where to go if you call them out
John also explains that even those who have the right to use the blue badge and park in disabled spaces are sometimes guilty of infringements.
“I am no longer driving but my wife brings me where I need to go and I have the blue badge for such purposes. But under the rules, she is entitled to park in an accessible parking space to drop me off, and then she must move the car to a public parking space, as the badge is attached to the disabled person not the vehicle,” he says.
Philip Knight, district manager of Gorey Municipal District says the council is fully committed to enforcing parking laws in the town.
“This was a service we used to run in Gorey that was launched around 2016. It was a pilot service and was reasonably successful at a time before we had a dedicated customer service unit,” he explains.
“Wexford County Council remains committed to keeping disabled access parking bays for those who need them, and all complaints are dealt with through the customer service unit where people can report incidents anonymously if they wish.”
Other parts of the country are also grappling with the issue, with members of Portlaoise Municipal District calling on Laois County Council to step up its efforts in tackling the abuse of disabled parking spaces.
A motion proposed by Cllr Tommy Mulligan at last month’s municipal meeting is calling for a text alert scheme in the town.
Fine Gael Cllr Paddy Buggy told Irish Country Living that the motion had been unanimously backed by members at the meeting.
“This is a huge problem not only in Portlaoise but all over the country and, unfortunately, it seems to reflect a growing problem in society where people just don’t care about how their actions affect others,” he says.
“Portlaoise is a big town, practically a city at this stage and we only have two traffic wardens who can’t be everywhere all of the time. A text alert system would help them massively and it would also be a deterrent to people who think they won’t be caught if they use disabled parking spaces, which they’ve no entitlement to.”
John McFarlane agrees it is a nationwide issue but says the problem is also encountered throughout Europe.
“The parking permits issued in Ireland are EU permits and this is a problem all over Europe and the UK,” he adds.
“I used to work for the EU Commission and was involved in drafting accessible built environment regulations in the 1980s and 1990s. There have been refinements to the laws in the intervening years and it comes down to enforcement.
Naming and shaming
“Social media groups have taken to naming and shaming offenders, where they post photos of cars parked illegally, but people continue to do it. If they were hit in the pocket with the €150 fine that applies to this offence it might change behaviour. Or they could follow the example of the authorities in Dubai.
“If you park illegally in an accessible parking space over there, you are fined for your first offence. If you do it a second time, they confiscate your car for a week and if that doesn’t teach you, your car is crushed for a third offence.”
A Review of the Disabled Parking Scheme was launched by the Department of Transport in 2023 and is nearing its final stages.
The Department is currently undertaking an analysis of the legislative basis of the scheme, with an emphasis on permit eligibility and assessment of mobility impairment, which is due for completion by the end of 2025.
Efforts to combat the abuse of the Blue Badge scheme, where people apply for a permit fraudulently or use a permit belonging to a person who is deceased, have led to a new offence being introduced in March of this year by the Department of Transport.People can now be prosecuted for such an offence, with penalties of up to €2,500 in fines and/or up to six months in prison.A fixed charged notice to the value of €200 may also be issued for the misuse of a permit by a person other than the named owner of the permit.A survey conducted by DDAI last year received 2,662 responses, 68% from women and 32% from men, with 94% in favour of a text alert scheme. 
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